Dr. David Eseli Simiyu

All parliamentary appearances

Entries 781 to 790 of 1379.

• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: From the outset, I support this Motion. However, I have various reservations. This Bill is about part of the election process in this country. It should have been better if we had this Bill coming together with the Political Parties (Amendment) Bill and Electoral Bill, so that we pass these things as a package and have them concentrated in one Bill rather than having them separated. As you look at this Bill, I feel there is a lot of inadequacy, yet for the last quarter century, elections in this country have been a painful experience. Every time we get towards ... view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, another issue we must learn is that it is not so much the law, but it is the way we behave. It is the political culture. The body politics of Kenya is riddled with impunity and corruption. This is not just about laws; it is about the conduct of individuals. Even as we speak right now, there are people who are slowly trying to create small tribal chieftains. These are the seeds that will eventually lead to the conflict that we see around elections. Those are things that cannot be avoided through laws. Those are things ... view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, the other thing we are facing here is honesty. We do not have a lot of honesty in our electoral system. One way that we can instill that honesty is that we have to spend money and go electronic totally. That is one way that we can ensure that we reduce these conflicts. I hope that the Minister, when he comes to consolidate all these things, will be able to take care of some of these things that I am saying. This body must be able to command, trust and respect everybody in the country. If ... view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: As I said earlier, a law alone might not be able to help us, unless we have something about the integrity of the leadership. If I may quote a Malawian musician, Oliver Mtukudzi, he poses: “Where does justice hide when it sees money?” We can have the best laws but if we have impunity, and the Bench is not behaving itself, justice will hide when it sees money. So, a good law alone might not be a safeguard for all Kenyans. view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, as Parliamentarians, we can go through this Bill and bring the amendments we require, if the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee is not up to the task. I believe that the membership of the Committee is a victim of impunity. The previous appointments, which were subsequently discarded, are the ones which have brought about this split in the Committee. So, the Members of the Committee are actually victims of impunity. Therefore, they should sit down and find out whether they are part of the problem or part of the solution, so that they can come together ... view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: This means we can appoint four Commissioners today and appoint another four Commissioners next week, because it is not more than 12 months since the first appointment. So, the use of language here is questionable. I do not know whether it is mischievous. I want to believe that this is a misprint. view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, the second provision under the Second Schedule says:- “2. A meeting of the Commission shall be held on such date and at such time as the chairperson shall decide”. view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: How do you leave it to one person to decide when to hold a meeting, where and at what time? He can decide to hold it at midnight. He might decide to call a few Commissioners and hold the meeting. I want to believe that these kinds of clauses are misprints rather than mischievous intentions; if they are mischievous intentions, then that will be a very big flaw in this Bill. view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, by and large, this country needs healing. Even as we come here to pass laws to operationalise the new Constitution, let us re- examine ourselves. Are we moving this country forward, or are we moving it backward through our utterances and deeds? view
• 27 Apr 2011 in National Assembly: With those few remarks, I beg to support. view